Ultimately, the Czarina is a baker, not a chef. Being a chef is a bit too loosey-goosey for her ingredient-wise; plus, it’s an intellectual challenge to learn the science that goes along with baking – the margin of error is astonishingly small.

From whence does this devotion to all things baked come from? The Czarina’s grandmother (yes, the one who would provide unsolicited fashion advice to the aesthetically wayward) baked for all special occasions, especially birthdays. Since getting one year older is more of a trauma than it used to be – there are no more subversive milestones to yearn for such as driving, or voting, or drinking legally – the trauma is now offset by the knowledge that one gets cake or pie. That’s just how birthdays are done.

Last year, the Czarina discovered the Bucktown Pie Contest, put on by the Friends of Holstein Park. The beautiful park is on Oakley Avenue in the Bucktown neighborhood. Proceeds from the contest go to the upkeep of the park, and it’s a worthy charity.

The contest draws both amateur and professional bakers from across the city. Last year, the representative from the American Pie Council (who the Czarina later saw on a Food Network special) reportedly said that a good number of the pies were national competition worthy!

I did not place last year but I made it to the semifinals. I am bound and determined to do better this year. This year’s judges are reported to be Gale Gand and Nancy Mathieson from the Pie Council, and hopefully no emergencies will arise that keep them from our pie, because that’s simply awesome. We all know Gale Gand from TRU and the Food Network.

But what is there to do if you’re not a baker? Per the contest’s website, there will be bluegrass music by Tangleweed, pumpkin decoration for kids, a silent auction including items donated by neighborhood boutiques, a $1,000 cash raffle, and an opportunity to buy some of the pie slices or whole pies.

Only 75 entries are allowed so, if you’re thinking of entering, now would be a good time. See you there, and no, I’m not telling you what’s in my pie right now.

Congrats to Megan Wade and her crew for organizing an event that gets better every year.

THIRD ANNUAL BUCKTOWN APPLE PIE CONTEST
Holstein Park
2200 N. Oakley
2 blocks south of Fullerton, 2 blocks east of Western
Sunday, October 14, 2007
2:00 – 5:00 PM
$10 to enter a pie for judging – admission is free

To register or for more information:
email: info@bucktownapplepiecontest.com
visit: http://www.bucktownapplepiecontest.com
phone: Megan Wade at 773.255.6828

The Czarina will be back next week from a much needed vacation with all new posts! Thanks for sticking with me!

The Czarina first met Caroline DeVillo when she was looking for an evening gown for the Czar’s Major Birthday. Caroline is passionate about what she does and is “committed to helping brides find the perfect dress.” Those of us who have planned a wedding are used to hearing that kind of dreck to market everything from Waterford to Wellies. However, those of us who have actually met Caroline know that, for at least one bridal dressmaker, it’s true.

Caroline’s studio in Bucktown is cozy. All of her dresses are made locally. One of the best things about working with Caroline is that she can mix and match aspects from her designs to suit the bride’s particular taste and body. There is a dressing area, and directly behind that dressing area is Caroline’s work space. She told the Czarina with due pride that she was expanding the salon and she was going to add evening wear to her collection after previously focusing on bridal alone. Caroline and her assistant were working diligently on an evening collection and three new bridal styles to be shown at Chicago’s Red Hot during Fashion Week on October 11th, 2007. Right now, Caroline has the best sort of challenge for an entrepreneur: she is so busy making dresses she had to hire more help and outsource more of the work so that she could effectively run her business.

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This is a mirror similar to the one that I will never own from Z Gallerie.

The Czarina makes every attempt to try and post about the positive things – good service, good food, a swell attempt, a nifty idea. She believes that there isn’t enough media coverage of the good things, and this is why so many of us are so irritated and angry all the time.

However, every now and then, the customer service is so outrageous that she has to say something to protect people from having to experience such hassles for themselves. Today, dear Citizens, is one of those times.

Somehow, a quick trip – literally across the street from the parking garage – turned into a huge hassle that made me want to stab someone. I have been looking for a full length mirror as I try to get into shape. I need someone who won’t lie to me, and as long as it isn’t a magic mirror, I’m fairly sure it won’t tell me I’m pretty when the ice cream I wolfed is finally showing up on my booty, whereas the Czar will. Whether he does this to save himself or he really believes it is unknown. I have my suspicions.

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Now, here’s something that everyone thinks is easy. If you’re picking out a cookbook for yourself, you go to Border’s or Barnes and Noble, pick one out of the shelf, and start paging through it until you find recipes you like, and then you buy it, right?

Great in theory, not so good in reality.

The Czarina gives her Citizens this example: I was in the Barnes and Noble on Webster and Clybourn a couple of weeks ago. I was excited to see that there was one – ONE – signed copy left of Charlie Trotter’s Spa Cuisine from the One and Only Palmilla resort. Without a second thought she picked it up and placed it in the “to buy” pile.

Luckily, that pile got too large for the Czarina’s pocketbook, so it needed to be thinned a bit. I started going through all of the cookbooks I had collected that day, including a few from the Culinary Institute of America.

While “Spa Cuisine” contained absolutely stunning photographs, as well as Chef Trotter’s scrawled signature, upon closer review it became apparent that most of the recipes were completely over the top. One of the items that had originally attracted my attention was the cold Watermelon Soup. How hard could that be?

Apparently, it was awfully hard.

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